COVID19: Taraba Govt. Lifts Ban On Religious Worship, Eases Lockdown.

Taraba state government on Monday lifted the ban on religious worship and has relaxed the lockdown observed in the state.

Rhapsodi Affos Blog gathered that movement will now be from Friday, Saturday and Sundays only. Instead of Wednesdays and Saturdays.It was further gathered that sequel to the new order, Churches and Mosques can now be open for worship and service while strict compliance to social distance and #COVID19 guidelines as outlined by WHO and the National Center for Disease Control (NCDC) must be observed.

Recall that a few days ago, all the COVID19 cases in Taraba were discharged and fully recovered.The new development was contained in a broadcast by the deputy governor of Taraba, Engr Haruna Manu.Below it readsTEXT OF RADIO AND TELEVISION BROADCAST TO THE PEOPLE OF TARABA STATE BY HIS EXCELLENCY, ENGR. HARUNA MANU, DEPUTY GOVERNOR, ON MONDAY MAY 18, 2020.Fellow Tarabans,It is necessary for me to once again address you on behalf of His Excellency, Arc. Darius Dickson Ishaku, the Executive Governor of Taraba State on the efforts made so far by the state government to contain the spread of the Coronavirus pandemic in our state.1. I am pleased to inform you that, as at today, Taraba State no longer has any active case of Coronavirus infection. All the cases previously reported were successfully managed by our frontline health workers and have all been discharged and they have rejoined their families. No fatalities were recorded in the process.We give thanks, first and foremost, to God Almighty, then to our courageous and very dedicated frontline health workers, members of the state Task Force on Covid-19 and to all of you the good people of Taraba State for obeying the protocols introduced to keep the pandemic in check.2. It is important for me to say that even with the present zero active case of Coronavirus infection in the state, we cannot yet say that we are completely free of the risk of infection. We must, therefore, remain committed to those international protocols introduced by the World Health Organisation and which have been domesticated to serve our needs and purpose in the state. That means our people must continue to regidly wash their hands regularly, wipe their hands with sanitizer, maintain social distancing, wear facemasks, avoid handshakes, and observe the lockdown order introduced by the state government. These are responsibilities which every individual must accept as their own contribution to the effort of government to protect them against the pandemic.3. On our part as a government, we will do everything possible to protect the people and this includes the acquisition of testing facilities to enable us conduct more tests for Covid-19 in the state. We will also continue to bring succour to our people with the provision of palliatives to make the effect of the lockdown less painful.4. Our 100-bed facility in Jalingo established with the assistance of Access Bank is now ready and health workers given special training on Covid-19 management are ready and waiting to provide necessary care if the need arises.5. At the point that we are presently in our fight to keep the pandemic in check in our state, we believe we can now further slightly ease the present restriction on movements and other activities within the state. Beginning from this week, Friday, Saturday and Sunday are now free days during which people can go out and attend to their personal needs. Time allowed is between 8am and 6pm. But these must be done with decorum and in strict compliance with the Covid-19 safety rules. Lockdown remains in force on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Inter-state movements are still restricted and violators will be severely penalised.Security agencies in the state should be much more vigilant. They should work in synergy with Chairmen of Local Government Council Areas, particularly those sharing borders with Cameroun and states with high cases of Covid-19 infection (Takum, Karim –Lamido, Wukari, Kurmi. Sardauna, Lau and Zing) to check influx of people into Taraba State.6. Christians and Muslims are also free to resume their religious worships in churches and mosques. In doing so, however, they must ensure the observance of the rule of social distancing and all other safety protocols such as hand washing, use of sanitizers and facemasks.7. Government wishes to thank the people for their patience and support in the fight against Covid-19. In particular, we wish to commend the fatherly roles of our traditional rulers and the state branches of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, and the Muslim Council for playing very remarkable roles in sensitising the people on the pandemic. We also thank security agencies in the state for helping to enforce the lockdown order by checking indiscriminate movements of people into and within the state.8. The truth which we must tell ourselves at this point is that the battle against Covid-19 is not yet over.But it is a battle we can win if we remain united behind our collective resolve to win.Thank you.